Like You
by Nighttyger
Summary: Silver has been questioning his place in Team Rocket, and a certain person on the other side isn't exactly helping. SoulSilver, AU. Strong swears, possible violence.
1. Stranger

A teenager with crimson hair walked down the almost-deserted side streets of Goldenrod City. He kept his head down, his arms crossed. His bangs shaded his distinctive eyes, though everybody knew who he was even without seeing them.

Silver Acerbi. The son of Giovanni, the man who so effortlessly took over the Kanjoh continent two years ago. Now, Team Rocket was not the name of a hunted criminal organization, but of powerful tyrants who roamed without fear and did whatever they pleased.  
The fear and hate people felt for them remained.

Silver didn't do much. He roamed Goldenrod City, where Team Rocket had set up their new headquarters, and attended the occasional executive meeting. He was supposed to take over, after all. Being at the top like he was, nobody ever told him to go investigate rumored "safehouses" or give demonstrations at the training facilities.  
So he did nothing. He didn't need to.

He hated it.

Before the takeover, at least he could do something. Train. Travel. The only thing left now was the multitudes of mindless grunts and fearful masses.

Silver palmed one of his Pokéballs and released his Weavile, who immediately climbed onto his shoulder, keeping a keen lookout for enemies - or loose valuables.  
Silver didn't really get the detachment that grunts were required to have. It was obvious enough to him that ignoring or mistreating a Pokémon didn't help its performance. It generally weakened it, in fact. Silver wouldn't have said he was friends with his Pokémon, but he did at least give them the respect they deserved.  
He hadn't always been like that. Two years ago he was just as ignorant. But when he had seen the fights between Team Rocket and some of its biggest threats, he had seen the difference with his own silver eyes. Ever since then, he had quietly respected his partners, all too aware that if he went the slightest bit too far with his praise, the consequences would hurt. It was probably a bad idea to have Weavile out, really.

His Pokégear beeped, alerting him of a new message. Another meeting. Another gathering of Rocket's greatest minds to discuss how to keep their lofty positions and suppress the populace.

Silver briefly closed his eyes before returning Weavile and starting towards headquarters._  
_

"We've had a decrease in recruits lately. We need more grunts for our posts in the other regions."  
Silver lounged in a large black leather chair, eyeing the Murkrow outside the window boredly. It was the same old, same old - we need more grunts, we need more supplies, there's some rebellion here - and he didn't feel the need to bother himself with it.  
"You." Silver ignored it. "Kid, you're supposed to be the boss' heir." That got Silver's attention well enough. "Don't you have any ideas?" asked the annoyed Admin. Silver looked up. He did, in fact, have an idea, but he knew the Admins wouldn't like it. He shrugged.  
"You've got somethin', don't you!? Spit it out!"  
Silver sighed, then said, "You could offer more food rations to the grunts. They'd come running for that."  
"You think those fuckers _deserve_ that!? You useless brat!"  
"You asked." Silver rolled his eyes. _Do they think I have to tell them what they want to hear?  
_"...I guess we'll just have to threaten them."  
"And then draft 'em if they refuse!" an excited red-haired woman yelled.  
"Why don't you just draft them in the first place if you're that desperate for soldiers?" pointed out Silver. The first grunt, the one that had spoken to him, the one with stubble and mean, dark eyes, glared at him, but another Admin, this one with purple hair, nodded and said, "The kid has a point."  
"Yes, he does," purred a voice that everyone immediately looked at. Executive Ariana. "I'm honestly ashamed that the best minds of Team Rocket couldn't come up with that. I mean, a mere child had to tell you what to do?" Silver decided not to comment on the fact that she hadn't said anything herself, or that he was certainly not a child. Ariana looked to Giovanni. "With your permission, of course, Giovanni, the other Executives and I will set up a series of drafts. I think it would be best if we simply went to the homes of those to be drafted; all the more leverage to have, no?" A sickly-sweet smile spread itself on her face.  
Silver knew he would agree before he even said so. In addition to the fact that it was, in fact, a good idea, he knew that even though Archer was technically second-in-command, Ariana had more power over his father.  
"Very well. Make sure to confirm the particulars with me beforehand."  
Nothing following that particularly interested Silver, and he resumed staring out the window for the rest of the meeting.

As he left the meeting room, Silver was stopped by Ariana's hand on his shoulder. He turned, shaking it off in the process. He saw brief smile play across her lips before she spoke.  
"That really was a good idea, dear. Keep up like that, and I'm sure you'll be just the type of leader we need." With that, she walked past him, brushing her hand against him once again. Silver sighed. With behavior like that, it was a wonder more people didn't question their relationship. Taking that with the standout red hair, it was fairly obvious to Silver that she was his mother - not that she had raised him. That would have kept her from her duties. No, Grace had done that, before she died.  
"Just standing here?"  
His father's deep voice cut through his thoughts. Silver looked up - even with his height, his father was still taller.  
"Is there something wrong with thinking?"  
"Not for you, though I would prefer you not clog the hall."  
"I was just leaving." Silver turned and walked the path to his room before his father could start on him about training or being more attentive during those meetings - "they're your future, after all". Did he even want that future? It felt suffocating to him.

-

The next day, Silver was walking along, much like the day before, when he heard a panicked voice in the next street.  
"Get away from me!"  
Silver looked around the corner of the wall to see a grunt pinning down a girl with brown hair. Silver narrowed his eyes. It disgusted him when those imbeciles did shit like that.  
He released his Alakazam and said, gritting his teeth, "Knock that son of a bitch out, please." Alakazam, not needing to ask who or where his target was due to his telekinesis, sent a powerful blast of psionics into the grunt's mind, instantly knocking him out and causing him to collapse on the girl. As he recalled Alakazam, Silver watched the girl, who quickly recovered, rolling the unconscious grunt off of her and standing up before delivering a powerful kick to his side. Silver thought he heard the crack of breaking ribs, but made no move to stop the girl from doling out her punishment - anyone who would fall that low deserved it. As she did so, he idly observed her. Her hair was in two pigtails, and she wore a pair of ripped jeans and a red-and-white shirt.  
Suddenly, the girl turned, and her chestnut eyes, the same color as her hair, fell on Silver before he could move. Time seemed to freeze for a second before Silver bolted, ignoring the shouted "Wait!"  
_  
Why did I do that? _Silver wondered later as he laid on his bed. _That had nothing to do with me. Why didn't you just walk past? Now that girl's seen you, and who knows what that could do, _he mentally berated himself. _At least the grunt didn't see me. _Yet, he found he simply didn't care about the results of his actions, and the lecture was only half-hearted.Silver found himself reflecting on the contradiction between himself and the organization he was born into. When Team Rocket encouraged a lack of morals, he attempted to at least somewhat uphold them. When the Executives preferred heavy-handed methods, he thought of gentler, subtler ones, with less collateral and more efficiency. When indifference was said to be the way to go, he became involved.  
It was unknown to him why or how he should be like this; after a certain point he had given up on figuring it out. It was annoying, confusing, and certainly not beneficial, yet it was such a part of him that he could never imagine throwing it away and allowing himself to be absorbed into the rancid hive mind that he inhabited.  
Silver sighed and rolled onto his side. _I'll just stay in for a few days. That girl's just another headache I don't need._

-

Lyra Soul couldn't get the boy out of her mind.  
She was certain he was the one who had saved her, if for no other reason than it being the only reasonable explanation. That, and his reaction to being seen. She sat in her room, hugging her knees - her mother had forced her to stay in when she heard what had happened.  
His hair was red, his clothes were black, and his eyes - those eyes that had widened with panic when she met them - were silver.  
Silver.  
Everybody knew there was one person who looked like that. Giovanni's son. But there was no way it could be him... _But no one else looks like him, _her mind argued. _But he's freaking Giovanni's son! _But... but... but... She argued back and forth with herself, all of her sentences seeming to begin with the same, mocking word.  
Even if it was him, then why... why would he help her? The question looped in her brain, torturing her with its seeming unanswerablility.

-

Silver exited the battling room, having just finished the cathartic process of crushing numerous pathetic grunts in battle. It was only a temporary release, but Silver needed all that he could get.  
As he walked through the wide passage, he glanced at the doors leading outside. He scowled, and a very brief mental battle began, which was quickly won by the part of him that just couldn't stand the place he had confined himself to for two days. He sprinted out the doors and let his legs carry him as his mind floated in the comparative freedom, blank and empty of thought for the first time in weeks.

Lyra stepped outside, only to be almost knocked down by a red-and-black blur.  
_Wait..._ Lyra followed the offender with her eyes, which widened as she recognized him. She promptly gave chase, frowning a bit when she realized that he was faster than her. Luckily enough, she knew that the street he had just turned down ended in a small yard. She just hoped he didn't do to her whatever he had to the grunt.

Silver almost unconsciously stopped when he hit the dead end. Still not thinking about anything in particular, he hunched over a little, catching his breath. When he wasn't as winded anymore, he looked around. He had no idea where he was - but that was why he had Golbat, right?  
He heard footsteps from the entrance, seeming to fall at a jogging pace. He spun around, hand in his jacket pocket, just as the person entered the yard.  
_Her!?  
_  
Lyra slowed. The expression on his face told her that yes, it was the same person.  
"So you are him."  
The statement hit Silver off-guard. _She was looking for me?  
_"Why?" she said. One word, so simple of a question. Silver frowned.  
"What do you mean?"  
"Why'd you save me?"  
A question he couldn't answer. He looked to the side, still ready to pull out a Pokéball if the need arose.  
"I asked you a question."  
"That was obvious enough."  
"Then why didn't you answer?"  
Silence.  
"What, ya too good for me or something?"  
Silver scoffed. "Do you even know who you're talking to?"  
"Of course... Silver."  
"Then why do you even need to ask?" _The jerk... _Lyra opened her mouth to insult him, but he spoke again before she could.  
"I'm Rocket. I'm trash. I'm not too good for anything." _Wait... what? Did he just insult his own organization?  
_Silver pulled out Golbat's ball and released him. _This woman is starting to get annoying. _"Take me somewhere I can get back to HQ from."  
Lyra shook herself out of her shock. "Hey! You still didn't answer my question!"  
As Golbat started to lift Silver up, he met her eyes for the first time during the entire conversation.  
"That's because I don't know." And with that, Golbat flew him away.  
Lyra watched him leave, even more confused than she had been before she chased him down. She had been sure there had been some ulterior motive, that he had some grudge against the grunt - but for him to insult Team Rocket and then say that he didn't know...  
"Silver, huh?" _You're just as strange as your name._


	2. Choices and Tiny Things

Lyra walked back towards her house. She stopped by one of the many greenhouses - the section she lived in was the "agricultural" one. The glass was slightly fogged up, but Lyra could still see the rows of vegetables, fruit, and dwarf berry plants. Hoping that the environment would help her clear her head, she entered, making sure that the door was completely shut, so as to not let the heat out.

Section 4, as the official documents referred to it as, was located in the north-eastern part of Goldenrod City. Lyra supposed she was lucky to live in 4; it was pretty far from Rocket headquarters, and it produced food for several cities, so Team Rocket tended to leave the place alone, and most families were able to grow a bit of extra food for themselves.  
It was a tense relationship, however. Before the take-over, the Gym had been in the area. This, combined with the fact that the Rockets didn't like to do much in the area, had turned the area into a haven for the types of people who were more... active in their hatred for Team Rocket. Section 4's fate seemed to balance on an Ariados thread, constantly teetering back and forth between the approval and wrath of Team Rocket. There were constant rumors that an attack would be launched - though whether it would be from the Rockets or the rebels never seemed to be a certain point.

In the back of the building, Lyra noticed several people loading bags onto a Pidgeot. Once the Pokémon had as many bags as it could carry, it flew off, and another one took its place. Going a bit closer, she heard one of the group talking.  
"Damn, we're never going to get all the supplies out in time."  
"Yeah. We could use some more people. Even one more person would help." It did look like a lot of work, and if the number of supplies was any indication, there were at least three more Pidgeot to load up.  
"You know we can't draw too much attention. We have to do it ourselves."  
It seemed the supplies were for the rebels. Lyra hovered in indecision, debating between helping and leaving. She'd always wanted to help. But she was scared. What if the Rockets found out, or her parents got mad, or some freak accident happened?  
Something from the back of her mind seemed to whisper, 'What if. What if you do help? What if this saves someone?'  
'Such little things, they can be so huge, you know.'  
Lyra frowned slightly. She could help them. Just a little thing, nothing big, no huge commitment - just a girl who passed by and did something a little brave. She forced herself to walk over to the workers.  
"Do you need help?"  
They stared at her, and she couldn't help but but feel self-conscious with their piercing stares locked on her.  
A few moments passed, and then one of them, a tanned man with dark hair and a beard, said, "Help us load these." Lyra nodded and moved into a spot where she thought she'd be helpful.  
One of the workers, a woman with medium-length, light purple hair, whispered to her, "This helps a lot. Thank you." Lyra simply nodded and helped lift the surprisingly heavy packages onto the Pidgeot. When she turned, she saw the Pokémon staring at her. "Uh... hi?" Lyra wasn't exactly sure what to do, since there were never any Pokémon around - Team Rocket had confiscated them all. She was surprised she knew what this one was called. Hesitantly, she stuck her hand out towards the underside of its head.  
"You really shouldn't do that," said one of the workers, a blonde-haired, blue-eyed young man. His words startled Lyra, and she jumped a bit. "Why not?" she asked, turning her gaze to the worker.  
"He's not familiar with you. He could bite you or peck you."  
Lyra looked back at the Pidgeot. She looked him in the eye, and saw an unmistakable spark. Intelligence. Curiosity. Even with the rather critical look he seemed to be shooting at her, she couldn't make herself think of him as violent. "I don't know. He seems okay." She moved her hand forward, placing it under the Pidgeot's head. The feathers were smooth and soft, but with a tiny bit of roughness. She instinctively ran her hand in the direction the feathers grew, smoothing down the rough patches as she went. A tense second passed; she was unaware of the rest of the group's eyes on her, solely focused as she was on the Pokémon in front of her.  
Finally, the Pidgeot made a small trilling sound, closed its eyes, and pressed its head against her hand. Lyra couldn't help but smile at how peaceful he seemed.  
"Hey, you ever handled a Pokémon before?" asked another of the workers. Lyra briefly looked up before shaking her head and returning her attention to the Pidgeot. _I've never even been this close to one._ The smoothness of the feathers, the structure of the wings, the way the crest on its head seemed to flow down its neck all mesmerized her.  
The workers all exchanged looks. The purple-haired woman asked her, "What's your name?"  
"...Lyra," she answered dreamily.  
"Hmm. ...well, Lyra, we need to keep working. Though I am glad you get along with him."  
"Huh? Oh, I'm sorry! Yeah, let's keep going!" Lyra said, giving the Pidgeot one last scratch under the chin before resuming her work.

The work was done quickly afterward; Lyra returned home tired, but with a sense of satisfaction. She had done something to help the rebels, something she had always been scared to do. She had met and befriended a Pokémon, a chance she had thought she'd never get. She was glad she had made that small choice. Maybe it would help her be better - less scared of insignificant shades of a possibility. One tiny step at a time.  
Overall, it was a very good day for her.

* * *

"You said you wanted to talk to me about something, right?"  
"Yes."  
"Well, tell me then!"  
"Of course... We were loading supplies for Blackthorn, and we had this girl help ou-"  
"You weren't worried about her telling?"  
"She saw us and just turned around. It was fine. Anyway, she just went right up to the Pidgeot and started petting it. No training, nothing."  
"That's pretty cool. But why is it important?"  
"Well, I was thinking, with some training-"  
"You wanna recruit her?"  
"Uh... yes, that's-"  
"Go ahead! She sounds like she'd be good! We need more Trainers, anyway. More everything, actually, but you can't have everything, now can you?"  
"Trainers? I was thinking more along the lines of a Breeder..."  
"We have enough of them. Put her into the Trainer course. We can change it later if we need."  
"Right. I'll go make preparations."

* * *

"You're going to be in charge of a mission next week. You need the practice."

"Geez. If looks could kill... I'm supposed to brief you, anyways. Section 4, the agricultural one-"  
"I know that."  
"It's a briefing. Calm down. Section 4's been withholding food. So somebody needs to go show them what happens when you don't follow orders."

"Take a couple hostages, get the food we were supposed to get. And a little extra. If you can manage that."

"And make sure they don't do it again. Maybe you could... set an example."

* * *

Lyra woke up to the soft murmur of voices beyond her door. Immediately, her thoughts snapped to the day before. Had the Rockets found out that she had helped the rebels? She sat up on her bed, tensed and ready to jump out if need be. Vaguely, the memory of her meeting with Silver rose like a bubble, then popped into the details and strangeness of it. She hoped no one had found out about that, either... _Silver... Could it really... He seemed so different from the grunts. From what I expected. Especially if he is the one who saved me... Ah, this isn't the time! _Paying closer attention to the conversation outside the door, she noticed the tone seemed much friendlier than she would've expected. _Maybe it isn't Team Rocket._ The thought had barely passed through her brain before the door to her room opened.  
It was the woman from the rebel workers.  
"Ah, it looks like she's already awake! Well then, Lyra, I think I have some things to explain to you." Lyra simply stared on, dumbfounded. _What... What's going on? Why is she in my house? And what is she talking about, needing to explain?_  
"Oh, you look a bit confused." The woman chuckled. "I suppose I would be too. First things first, my name is Alexandria. But most people just call me Alexa. I noticed you got along very well with that Pidgeot yesterday - we all did. That's pretty rare for someone with no previous handling experience. So I was thinking - maybe you'd like to help us... on a more permanent basis. We could use you."  
Lyra had thought she was surprised before, but this took the cake. This woman was barging into her house and asking her to become an active member of the rebels.  
"What." Lyra immediately gave herself a mental kick for sounding so annoyed and stupid. It was just so much. She felt like she'd been shocked - or at least, what she imagined it felt like.  
"Ah, I'm sorry. Here, let me start over."

"I'm Alexandria - but you may call me Alexa. As you know, I am one of the rebels working to try to bring down Team Rocket. The way you handled that Pidgeot yesterday was amazing. Especially since you've never had any experience with a Pokémon. Someone with as much natural talent as you would be a great asset. So, on behalf of the entire base, I'm inviting you to join us."  
Lyra sat in silence. Join the rebels? She'd always wanted to help, but she'd also always been scared of what could happen - not just to her, but to her parents as well. She wouldn't want to put them in danger at all... And, what if she ended up being horrible? What if it was just a fluke, and the minute she actually had to do something, she froze up or failed spectacularly? It wouldn't be just her that suffered.  
"It's okay if you're nervous. We all were when we first started."  
"I... I'm sure... but... what if I'm horrible what if itwasjustafluke?" She flailed her arms around, further accentuating her confusion and fear.  
"Trust me, it wasn't."  
"But what if I can't do anything else!? Then I'd just be useless..."  
"That's what we have training for. We'll help where you need it."  
Lyra stayed silent. Even if that was all she could think of now to be worried about, she knew that something else would appear, that the unpleasant feeling in her stomach would bloom into some crippling worry. She put her legs over the side of the bed and stood up. She wasn't sure why; the movements were foreign and mechanical to her.  
_Mom. Dad._ That was it. Slowly, she walked through the door to find her parents sitting on the sofa, worried, with wondering, frightened expressions on their faces. Lyra lifted her head, met the gazes of her parents, and hollowly walked over and fell to her knees.

Silence reigned for a full minute, and then Lyra spoke.  
"Did she tell you..." Though the sentence was unfinished, it still carried her intended message.  
"A little," her mother answered. She sighed, and Lyra caught the barest shine of a tear on her cheek. Lyra lifted herself to her knees, and wrapped her arms around her parents. She felt a drop hit her shoulder - her mother had started crying again. She felt her parents embrace her - her mother's arms, thinner than they should have been, and seemingly fragile, and her father's, strong, rougher, but still having a paper-thin feel in that moment.  
The family stayed tied together for a while, before Lyra's mother slowly drew her arms back to herself.  
"Lyra... I..." Her mother paused to blink back more tears. Lyra didn't quite understand why everything felt so desperate and final. She hadn't made her choice, had she?  
"I've always wanted to keep you safe... but Arceus knows that it has to happen sooner or later..."  
Lyra closed her eyes and bowed her head as she came to a realization. _I don't have a choice, do I? _  
_If I don't... what will happen? The Rockets will get me. I'll die. I'll end up here anyway._  
_And if it hurts this much, just to do this... what would the others feel like?_  
_What do the ones who truly have no choice feel like?_  
A sad smile flickered across her face. _This is how it's going to be._ She lifted her head to look at her parents once again. "Mom... Dad..."  
She could see - in their eyes, on their faces, in the small hitch of breath her mother took - they knew. So, wordlessly, they hugged each other once again. Lyra could feel tears welling up in her own eyes, and after a fruitless struggle, she let them silently fall.  
This embrace was shorter, and yet she felt more comfort in it. Maybe because she knew her path now. Maybe because she had, if only briefly, silenced the turmoil in her mind.  
Who knew.

She walked back into the room, that, so small a time ago, she had been ignorantly resting in.  
"What do I need to do?"

She walked up to her parents. Another hug, kisses, exchanges of "I love you"s.

She walked out the door, following the purple-haired woman to wherever this choice would take her.

* * *

**Okay, I didn't put an AN on anything else so far, so I thought I should do that here, especially since I need to say a couple things. They'll probably be a more regular occurrence from now on.**

**Hey, I can actually put out things! :D Nothing much to say here. This was intended to have a bit more Silver in it, but I find that my stories often go in directions I didn't expect. (He'll ****_probably_**** be back next chapter.) I usually let them write themselves, for the most part. I do have a destination in mind for this, though, so don't worry about it getting lost or anything!**

**The idea for this fic came from this song - Like You by Fox Stevenson - hence the title.**

**Comments, favorites, suggestions, and general chatter always appreciated!**

**-Nighttyger**


	3. Learning

Lyra was woken up by the sound of cawing.

"Huh...? Oh. Hi." The Pidgeot cocked its head, staring at her for some moments.

"Fine, fine, I'm up," she grumbled as she peeled the covers off of herself. She was still wearing her outfit from yesterday – one of the rules was that you always had to be prepared.

It had been a week since she had left her home. Add another day, and it was when everything started, when she had finally gotten the courage to help the rebels.

It was also the last time she had seen Silver, but their meeting was faint in her mind. With everything that she had been taught in the past week, there was no room for such vague thoughts.

She changed quickly into a black shirt and khaki pants. Comfy, and convenient. Perfect for a girl learning about being a Trainer, or what now passed for one, at the very least.

Walking quickly into the hall and up the stairs at its end, she arrived in the main room.

Brief greetings were exchanged as she walked towards the kitchen. They generally had fruit, berries, oatmeal – nothing that would release smoke. That was saved for if they truly needed the energy.

Lyra quickly ate, then went back downstairs to the bathroom. When she was finished, she returned to the main room, then followed another stairway up and beyond, finally arriving outside.

The sun was shining brightly that day, which Lyra was thankful for. Training wasn't as much fun on cloudy days, when the air was cool and whipped around giving her goosebumps.

"You ready, Lyra?" Alexa called out to her. She had taken it upon herself to teach Lyra, another thing Lyra was glad for. She knew her the best out of everyone there, and while she was slowly meeting and getting acquainted with the other rebels, she wasn't really comfortable around many of them yet.

Her day went by in a mix of exercises, both for her and the Pidgeot. She wasn't sure how Alexa had managed to get her the Pidgeot, considering how powerful and helpful it was, but once again, she was grateful. She ran around the edges of the enclosed area they inhabited, trying to get just a bit farther in the time Alexa would give her. Half an hour was spent memorizing type matchups, which she found fairly easy – water put out fire and washed away dirt, bugs ate plants, and rocks knocked flying things out of the sky. She still wasn't quite sure how Dark was effective against Ghost, but she wasn't Arceus, so she just accepted it as something kinda weird. A short lunch, consisting of the same types of food as breakfast, helped restore some of her energy. She had mock battles against other rebels, which was her favorite part of the day. She liked it because it allowed her to put what she had learned to use and see how things worked into each other. For example, a Breeder that she went against, rather than attacking, preferred to charm their opponents into sleep, infatuation, or confusion, then take advantage of the new weakness. She would mentally note the strategies, and try to work them into her own fights. To end off the day, she learned about the history of training - the origins of the League, the spread of training as a sport, and the legendary Trainers that everyone in the base looked up to.

Lyra always looked forward to those lessons. She loved to sit under the big tree at the edge of the courtyard, spellbound by the tales of the legendary Trainers. Other rebels would even stop and listen to the stories of their heroes for a brief moment before being chased off to do their jobs. She particularly liked the ones from Kanto and Johto, since they were people who had gone through the Rocket takeover and fought against it. The siblings Red and Leaf, the former of which was one of two people to catch every known Pokémon in Kanjoh. Green, the former Gym Leader, who had almost been the Grand Champion of the Indigo League. Ethan and Kris, the "battle couple" who stayed by each other's side until the very end.

Unfortunately for Lyra, they were not part of that day's lesson, and she was instead taught about the Gyms.

"Lyra! You did really well today. I've got one more thing for you, though," said Alexa after Lyra had successfully recounted the basics of Gyms.

"Huh? What's that?" Lyra asked. She had expected the history lesson to be the end of the day for her.

"We're going to play hide-and-seek!"

"...what?" Lyra gave Alexa a confused look. _Hide-and-seek? Er... That's a kid's game._

"I know, it seems a bit weird. But just trust me on this one. I'll seek."

It didn't seem she had much of a choice, so Lyra promptly ran off in a random direction. She found an empty bin and climbed inside.

Much to her dismay, Alexa found her fairly quickly.

"That was a pretty bad place to hide, you know."

"Why's that? You couldn't see me, could you?"

"No, but I didn't need to. For one thing, you ran off, so I knew which direction you went in. Secondly, you hid in an object that echoes quite a bit. I could hear pretty much all the little sounds you made. Also, since you hid in something, you couldn't have fled and hid somewhere else."

"Isn't moving against the rules?"

"I never said you couldn't."

"Oh." _...I guess I'm really bad at hide-and-seek._

It was silent for a minute before Alexa said, "Why don't we try that again?"

Even taking everything Alexa had said into consideration, Lyra was still discovered quickly. Apparently, her hiding spot was "uncreative". "Let me guess, you walked, and then you didn't have hardly any time to find a spot?"

"Nailed it," Lyra grumbled.

"How about you try to find me this time?"

"I'll never find you! You're too good at this game..."

"It's not just a game, Lyra. It's quite important." Another few moments of silence passed. _Important? How?_

"One more try, then, Lyra?"

"All right..."

Lyra thought about what had gone wrong the last two times as she looked around for a spot to hide. As she headed towards a group of low walls, she thought about what she'd been told. Too fast, and she'd be heard. Too slow, and she'd have no time to hide. She realized she was jogging. Well, there went that. _Unless..._ Lyra turned around and quickly walked the other way.

_Okay... Now what? _Lyra decided that she was out of earshot, so she started jogging once more. She saw boxes, barrels, and walls, but they all seemed too obvious. Lyra turned her head to look straight in front of her, and saw a tree.

_That... would take some time to climb. But that would also make it an unexpected spot, right? I'll try it._

Lyra walked to the other side of the tree, which would help hide her if she was still climbing when Alexa tried to find her.

After situating herself in the tree, Lyra waited for Alexa to find her. It seemed like she was taking longer this time, but there was no way to be sure.

While she waited, Lyra reflected on her time there up to that point. It was hard, definitely. They woke up early, and didn't have a ton to eat. But, at the same time, Lyra couldn't say that she regretted joining the rebels. She'd be able to help people out this way, and she was learning a lot.

_Man, all that learning really takes the energy out of me, though._ Suddenly, she heard a voice that sounded rather like Alexa's, and closed her eyes in order to get a better bearing on it. It proved to be a false alarm when the voice responded to the name of "Chelsea", however. A breeze blew through the leaves on the tree, which, while it made her shiver just a bit, also made a wonderful sound that reminded her of home – her mother folding clothes, her dad walking in with armfuls of leafy plants rustling against each other, her parents tucking her into bed and whispering things that she couldn't quite make out.

The next thing Lyra knew, she was lying on the ground, staring at shining green with a sore butt.

"Oh. Just who I was looking for!" Lyra heard the voice giggle behind her, before it came to her front. Alexa. Suddenly, Lyra remembered that she was supposed to be playing hide-and-seek, and that she was also supposed to be in the tree above her. As she took Alexa's offered hand and hauled herself up, she realized that she had fallen asleep – and then out of the tree.

"What a way to get myself caught," she groaned, rubbing the back of her head.

"Yeah, but on the plus side, I've been looking for you for about 15 minutes," Alexa said. "In any case, I think that's about enough for today. You can go ahead and eat if you want.

After her dinner, Lyra showered, then lied on her bed. She still wasn't quite sure what the purpose of playing hide-and-seek was. She could see how it supposed to help with hiding, but it seemed so different that she couldn't imagine that it would actually be useful. In any case, she was tired, and so she closed her eyes and let herself drift off to a place where she didn't have to think.

The next morning seemed much the same. Wake up, eat, go outside. Learn some more. Eat again.

Then Alexa came up to her during lunch.

"You're going to do something a bit different this afternoon."

She proceeded to explain that, in order to see how she handled herself, she was going to go on a "patrol", complete with air-quotes.

"Don't worry, there isn't going to be anything. You're just going to go around the immediate area so we can see how you act. That way we know what you still need to learn."

Lyra was still nervous, despite the reassurances. Alexa got a map and showed her where to go, while Lyra tried her best to memorize the path. It was simple. Just a circle, with one dead end to check.

As she set out, she looked around her, walking fast so she could cover ground while still being able to see her surroundings clearly. Nothing unusual stuck out to her – the buildings and roads were the same desaturated grays that they always were, the sky was bright and blue, and a few leaves clinged to the walls.

She walked into the dead-end street, glancing around the small and, as she had been informed, uninhabited area. Grey. Leaves. Sky. Nothing unusual except for a near-pristine piece of paper that fluttered around and stood out like a flower in the snow. A quick glance given, she strided over to it and picked it up, only to be confronted by a jumble of letters and numbers that made no sense, yet were organized as if they contained the most important information.

She folded the paper and placed it in her pocket, turned, and continued back to the base.

Once Alexa had finished asking about what she saw and telling her how she could improve, Lyra handed her the piece of paper.

"I did find something... Here..." Alexa unfolded the paper and criticized its contents.

"Hmm. This looks like it might be a code of some sort, though it probably isn't anything important. Everything gets coded. I'll have Brenna check on it, though."

"Brenna?" asked Lyra. This was a name she hadn't heard yet.

"Yeah, she's the resident codebreaker, along with Mitchell. She'll be able to figure out whatever it says."

"Oh." Lyra had noticed that she was saying that quite frequently, though who could blame her, with everything she was learning?

"Why don't you come down with me? It'll do you good to meet some more of the people around here."

Lyra nodded her assent, to which Alexa responded, "Alright then, just follow me."

The room Alexa led her to was downstairs and a bit secluded, "to help them concentrate" as Alexa said. She knocked, and a cheery voice called, "Come in!"

Inside, the room was slightly larger than Lyra would have thought, furnished with a couple of desks and a sofa, and very chilly. A woman with wavy reddish hair and hazel eyes that seemed backlit lounged on the couch in a gray hoodie and jeans. Lyra assumed this was Brenna, as the only other person in the room was a young man sitting at one of the desks with his back to them, presumably Mitchell. All she could see was his dirty blonde hair and black sweater. Lyra wished she had one on as the hair rose on her arms.

"Oh, hey, Alexa! And who's this?" asked the woman as she stood up and waved. She seemed very energetic for her surroundings, which went from brightly lit at the desks to very dim in the corners.

"I'm Lyra. You're Brenna, right?"

"Yep, that's me! And Lyra is such a pretty name! So, anyway, why you guys here? Nobody ever comes down to chat," said Brenna, the last sentence accompanied by a small pout.

"That's because we're supposed to be working," came a new voice. "I suppose I should introduce myself," said the man as he stood up and turned around, revealing himself to be much taller than Lyra had expected. He took off a pair of black-framed glasses, setting them on the desk before walking up and extending his hand.

"I'm Mitchell. I work on codes along with Brenna. Not that there's ever that much work." Lyra briefly shook his hand and repeated her name, before stepping back a bit. Maybe it was his height, but he intimidated her for some reason.

"Aww, you don't need to be scared by him. He's tall, and sometimes he's got a sharp tongue, but he's friendly!" teased Brenna.

"I'm not scared of him! He's just... really tall. I was trying to get a better look at him," retorted Lyra. To back up her claim, she gave Mitchell a once-over. Black shoes, jeans, black sweater, dirty blond hair, and blue eyes.

"Whatever you say," said Brenna. "Anyway, what did you want, since somebody interrupted," she continued, giving Mitchell a sidelong glance, who just rolled his eyes.

"Lyra found this paper, and we were wondering if it was coded or gibberish," said Alexa, holding out the paper in question. Brenna took it and studied it briefly.

"It looks like there might be some patterns... but I'd have to check to be sure. What do you think?" she said, looking towards Mitchell.

"Yeah, there's some possibility here," said Mitchell, who had moved to look over Brenna's shoulder. "We'll just have to get back to you."

"Okay, that sounds good. Thanks!" answered Alexa.

"Bye!" said Brenna, giving another energetic wave. "And nice meeting you, Lyra!"

"You too! And you," said Lyra, waving towards both of the codebreakers. Mitchell simply nodded and raised his hand.

As they walked back towards the stairs, Alexa asked, "So, what did you think of them?"

"Brenna's... very energetic. And Mitchell seems really quiet. But I think they're both pretty nice!" answered Lyra.

"Yeah, that sounds about right. Why don't we grab something to eat?"

"Yeah, that sounds good."

Later that night, after most of the base had gone to sleep, the two codebreakers were still awake. Brenna was still trying to decipher the paper, which she had determined was, in fact, in code, and Mitchell was translating a few papers into code.

"Geez, you wouldn't think it would be this hard to break," said Brenna suddenly, breaking the silence that had enveloped the room since a conversation about Nanab berries about an hour earlier.

"Don't ask me for help. I just started getting the hang of this one," replied Mitchell.

Brenna just sighed and returned to her work. "Maybe if... this was actually..." Frantic scribbling could be heard. "Of course! How did I not see that..." Brenna sighed.

The room was silent for a period of time as Brenna corrected the work she had done, occasionally mumbling incoherently. A certain word, however, caused her eyes to widen as she started to work even more frantically than before.

"Mitchell."

Under normal circumstances, he might have ignored her and continued working, especially when he had just told her that he wasn't going to help her, but something in the tone of her voice caused him to put down his pencil and turn around.

"What?"

"It says something about an attack." Hearing this, he frowned, his brows coming together in a worried expression. They knew the paper wasn't theirs, so the fact that it was mentioning an attack...

"I... don't know exactly what it's sayi-" Brenna's sentence was cut off by a gasp. Hearing her obviously worried tone, Mitchell got up and walked the short distance between the desks they occupied.

"This... I think this is a Rocket message!"

His eyes widened, his expression a more subtle reflection of Brenna's.

"And... this is an attack plan, it looks like," continued Brenna.

"It's a good thing that we got it, then. When's the attack supposed to be?"

"Uh, hold on..." After a minute of so of only the sound of a pencil scratching on paper, another gasp escaped Brenna's mouth.

"Oh, Arceus." Neither of the two codebreakers invoked the name of Arceus very much, so its use combined with Brenna's tone and all-too-evident concern caused Mitchell's heart to drop to his stomach.

"It's supposed to be-"

The answer to his question was stolen out of Brenna's mouth, answered by the sudden, faint sounds of shouts, Pokémon cries, and attacks.

"Now..."

* * *

**Wow, I'm horrible at having a decent upload schedule.**

**Anyway, here's chapter 3. I had a hard time with this one, mostly because I had writer's block and no pre-existing ideas. Oi. Next chapter we get to see how good**(bad)** at writing action(?) I am. **  
**As always, favorites, follows, and reviews are appreciated!**


End file.
